Update 22/04/2016: Individual members from student societies across the political spectrum at the University of York (UoY), including the “Labour Club, the York Tories, the UoY Lib Dems, York UKIP, York Greens, PalSoc, York Liberty and York Union”, have announced that they will be working together to write a motion demanding York University Student Union […]
Continue readingTag Archives: resistance
NUS candidate faces further scrutiny ahead of hustings
The National Union of Students’ (NUS) conference kicks off in Brighton today, with the accompanying electoral processes dogged by antisemitism allegations against Malia Bouattia, who is running for NUS President. On Thursday, Student Rights detailed how a number of student Jewish Society members had raised questions about Bouattia’s ability to represent them, as well as […]
Continue readingMalia Bouattia faces questions over NUS leadership bid
Over 50 representatives from university Jewish Societies have raised serious questions about Malia Bouattia’s candidacy for National Union of Students (NUS) President. In an open letter, these students have called on Bouattia to explain past anti-Zionist statements and questioned her links to the Muslim Public Affairs Committee UK (MPACUK), currently no-platformed by the NUS. Bouattia’s […]
Continue readingNUS officer speaks at MEMO event
Here at Student Rights, we have frequently criticised National Union of Students (NUS) officials when they have campaigned alongside groups like CAGE and MEND. This trend continued last Saturday, when NUS Black Students’ Officer Malia Bouattia spoke at an event organised by Middle East Monitor (MEMO) titled ‘Targeting Dissent: Israel’s Crackdown on Arab Citizens’. MEMO […]
Continue readingStudent Voice: The culture of violence within our SU
Following the ongoing controversy over the LSESU Palestine Society’s commemoration of terrorists, LSE student Liam Marc Robson reflects on the LSESU’s handling of the incident in this article cross-posted from The Beaver. All views are his own, and do not necessarily represent those of Student Rights. “What is terrorism?” It used to be so simple. […]
Continue readingNUS campaign materials endorse extremist groups
Today, activists from the National Union of Students (NUS) Welfare Campaign and NUS Black Students’ Campaign are taking part in a “national day of action” against Prevent, the government counter-radicalisation policy. Part of an ongoing effort to undermine attempts to challenge extremism on campus, this follows a number of events on the issue which have […]
Continue readingFOSIS work with MEND on Islamophobia campaign
Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM) aims to raise awareness of anti-Muslim hate crime across the UK. Bigotry towards Muslims remains a problem at UK universities, and groups like the Federation of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS) are right to highlight this serious issue. Student Rights has logged a number of anti-Muslim incidents at universities in the past, […]
Continue readingStudent Voice: Free speech and the alienation of Israeli students
The limits of freedom of expression on campus, and the difficulty in striking a balance between providing safe spaces and arenas for robust debate, have become increasingly pertinent issues in recent weeks. Here, King’s College London (KCL) student Emma Webb gives her take on how Israeli and Jewish students feel campus activism against Israel has […]
Continue readingOpen letter shows concerns about student campaign against Prevent
Last week saw an open letter published in the Independent which targeted the UK’s counter-radicalisation strategy, Prevent, and called for it to be scrapped. Signed by over 40 senior National Union of Students (NUS) and individual student union officers, the letter damned the policy as one which: “…reinforces an ‘us’ and ‘them’ view of the […]
Continue readingUCU opposition to Prevent leads to support for extremists
In recent months, government attempts to deal with campus extremism have faced opposition from students, lecturers, and even the former Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg. Following the General Election, plans to give universities a legal duty to prevent students from being drawn into extremism have returned to the agenda – as has the resistance to […]
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